In this puzzle each of the Across clues is initially composed of wordplay followed, after the hyphens, by the definitions of the solutions. These definitions are defined, somewhat cryptically, not by Chamber’s (the BRB) but by that other great work of the English language, The Complete Uxbridge English Dictionary or its online variants, which have evolved from the Radio 4 panel game “I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue”.

In an attempt to restore sanity, the Down clues are clued conventionally. It might help to start with the Downs…….